Meet the Cast of The Snow Maiden: All in the Family, Part II!

Where does one start when relating a story of such a large family of dancers when each of them is so very different in spirit -- with the eldest, the youngest, the newest, the wiliest?  Yes, if you noticed, there are four of them!

Meet the Coles: four very dedicated and lovely dancers who can be found most days at Sonoma Conservatory of Dance, taking classes from Elementary II to Advanced Ballet, Contemporary, and Jazz; helping as dance aides in our Saturday morning Joy of Movement classes; working hard and repeatedly in weekend rehearsals for December's The Snow Maiden; and sometimes playing soccer or catch in alleyways nearby during breaks (they're not allowed to climb the trees anymore).

Olivia was the first of the Coles to step onto the dance floor of SCD and also the first to perform in a production of The Snow Maiden -- Sonoma's premiere performance of 2010 to be exact! -- in which Olivia was cast as a Snow Ball, part a lively group dance in Act II welcoming the delicate Snow Maiden to the magical Land of Snow.

While keeping the fun role of Snow Ball year after year, Olivia graduated to add solo parts as The North Wind and The South Wind in respective seasons.  Now in her fourth season of The Snow Maiden, Olivia is both humbled and thrilled to be cast as the mystical Snow Maiden herself!  This role requires no lack of dedication from Olivia who spends nearly every weekend in rehearsals with guest dancer, Evan Johnston, The Snow Maiden's Lel, the Russian shepherd who loves her, plus nearly three dozen other youth dancers that comprise this year's cast.

At age 15 and at the Advanced level at SCD, Olivia sometimes feels the age and level gaps between her and her three siblings are too wide to bridge: 

"I wish I danced more with them.  I don't really see them as much as you might think, but I'm really proud of them because they're becoming better dancers -- they're already pretty much brilliant as actors!   

"Our whole family is pretty dramatic," she laughed.

The love of performing is indeed something shared within the Cole family.  In succession, Ian, now age eight, and Fiona, age 11, donned ballet slippers for classes and joined the second and third casts of The Snow Maiden, while David, age 13, worked in the rafters as the master of Lights and Sounds.

This year, in their third season of The Snow Maiden, Fiona and Ian are thrice again cast as fierce and formidable Snow Guards, the vigilant watchdogs for the Snow Queen and the other inhabitants of the Land of Snow.  While ever-dramatic Fiona and high-spirited Ian always look forward to wowing audiences of The Snow Maiden with daring and dramatic feats while defending all against trespassing Lel, this year they are tickled blue to share new choreography and theatrics added to accommodate their advancement as dancers.  

Never lacking words to express herself, Fiona had much to say about dancing with her family in The Snow Maiden:

"My family is awesome!  I'm so happy for Olivia because she has the most important role anyone could wish for, and I really think David likes being the Snow Man which is a very special and funny role.  But mostly I love being a Snow Guard with Ian.  We get to fight Lel when he comes to the Land of Snow, and it's one of the most exciting dances that makes the crowds go wild!  Plus, I get to spend more time with Ian who goes to a different school now so I don't see him as much as I used to."

Ian was only a touch more reserved:

"It's fun to be with my family and to dance with them.  I really like watching Olivia when she's dancing with Evan; they do a lot of scary things.  David's really funny as the Snow Man because his suit makes him all big and fat.  But I have the most fun with Fiona because she laughs with me when we get flipped around by Evan.  I just love rehearsals and shows!  I wish we did them all the time."

Keeping all the full-length productions running smoothly and sounding perfectly for two seasons, David joined SCD only last year as a dancer.  Although it took David the longest to catch the family bug, once caught he attacked his classes with a single-minded determination to learn and a focused dedication to improve and become stronger.  After stepping onstage for the first time this summer past for our 9th annual Summer Dance Workshop Performance, David quickly accepted the challenging role of The Snow Man, husband to Act II's Mama Winter and father to a number of adorable Snow Drops plus mischievous Jack Frost.  Counting the years ahead, David cannot wait for his chance to one day play the role of Lel, since his favorite part of Ballet dancing is partnering with our dancers on pointe, lifting and guiding them with precision.

Not surprisingly, David loves being on the other side of the curtain: 

"I think it's cool to be the Snow Man because I get to be funny and make my friends laugh.  Plus, I really like watching Olivia dancing as the Snow Maiden.  She's worked really hard, and I'm proud of her."

As for his younger siblings who sometimes pose challenges when they tease him about all the pretty girls with whom he dances in The Snow Maiden: 

David shrugs, "Sometimes I wish I wasn't dancing with them at all, that I could leave them at home; but mostly I think it's pretty cool that Fiona and Ian are the Snow Guards every year -- they're really good!"

See the Coles work family magic onstage the Sebastiani Theatre, December 7 & 8 at 1:00PM.  For tickets visit Brown Paper Tickets or call (707) 938-1424.

Meet the Cast of The Snow Maiden: All in the Family, Part I

Being part of The Snow Maiden has become a tradition for Sara McDermott.  Now age eight, Sara first joined the SCD family when she was just five, starting with our popular Joy of Movement classes which introduce children to the structured and expressive world of dance using poems, stories, music, and plenty of imagination.  Although too young to participate in SCD's full-length dance productions, Sara watched in the proverbial wings with other too-young dancers, waiting for her turn to perform.

Currently in her third season of The Snow Maiden, Sara was previously cast as a member of group dances, being a Snow Drop and Snow Flake, respectively, as well as a "Little Sister" during opening scenes.  However, this year Sara was cast in a solo role -- and a pivotal one at that!  

Sara is our Domovoi, a magical house spirit who looks after the people living in its home.  In particular, this Domovoi protects and helps the childless "Old Woman" who faithfully builds a snow sculpture each year and for decades.  The Old Woman hopes the sorcerous Snow Queen will finally condescend to transform her sculpture into the daughter upon whom she has set her heart.

Finding herself happily straddled with more responsibility and creativity, and also finding herself leading nearly every scene of The Snow Maiden, Sara is both excited and nervous about her role as Domovoi.  Plus, said Sara, "The costume is really hot!"

Obviously, being Domovoi makes this season's production very special for Sara, but it is not the only highlight.  This season, Sara brought along her younger sister, Mia.  Well, to be honest, no one just "brings along" Mia.  

"Domovoi" Sara and "Snow Drop" & "Little Sister" Mia

Sweet and spirited, elfish Mia waited three long seasons in our Joy of Movement classes, watching with delight as her sisters Sara and Layla performed in two seasons each of Winter's The Snow Maiden and Spring's The Magic Toy Shop.  Mia, who picks up the roles from which Sara graduated, cast as a "Little Sister" and a "Snow Drop," loves our shows, and especially likes being in this show with her sister.

Both girls enjoy watching other and more advanced dancers rehearse their roles in The Snow Maiden.  Sara's favorite dance is that of the "West Wind," a magical wind summoned by the Domovoi to help our Russian shepherd boy, Lel, bring the Snow Maiden back from the Land of Snow.  To Sara, the costume and "lots and lots of spinning" of the lively West Wind are tops.

As for Mia, she likes all the parts: "I can't explain my favorite part because it would take forever!"

The Snow Maiden takes the stage to benefit the beloved and historic Sebastiani Theatre at 1:00PM on Saturday, December 7, and Sunday, December 8.  For tickets, visit BrownPaperTickets.com or call (707) 938-1424.

Meet the Cast of The Snow Maiden ... "Mama Babushka"

Now rehearsing for its fourth season, The Snow Maiden: a Russian fairytale of love and magic will take the stage this December as a fundraiser for Sonoma's historic and beloved Sebastiani Theatre.

Cast with more than thirty student dancers, ages six to seventeen, from the Sonoma Conservatory of Dance, The Snow Maiden surprises and delights audiences each and every year with its high levels of dance technique, dramatic performance, lively music, and graceful artistry -- not to mention the beautiful costuming and choreography by Brooke Byrne of Khadra International Dance Theatre, San Francisco.

This year, we're taking the greatest pleasure to introduce to you some of the new and returning members of the season's cast.  First to grace this virtual page is Ms. Nella, cast as "Babushka" of Act I and "Mama Winter" of Act II!

Ms. Nella first came to SCD as the grandmother of a new Joy of Movement student.  Finding SCD also offers classes for adults, she decided to "rediscover dance" for herself and enrolled in both our Adult Ballet and Capacitar classes.  Ms. Nella soon fell head over heels in love with her ballet class: 

"Well, one step in the door opened up a whole new wonderful experience: not only have I found a new joy in dance, it keeps growing!  The teaching  is of such high quality and is done in such a way that it is so encouraging.  I absolutely love it; I never dreamed that I would be able to jump at all and here I am doing the unimaginable. 

"There is something that I want to emphasize about ballet which makes it so special for me: it is a way to bring in beauty and grace, because it is truly Art.  With the music and the choreography, I feel uplifted and not browbeaten as I often do after a fitness class."

And, according to Ms. Nella, our Capacitar classes which emphasize healing and empowerment, consistently leave her feeling quite calm and peaceful -- a great way to start or revive her day!

Not long after becoming a student at SCD, Ms. Nella became the instructor of our Wednesday afternoon Joy of Movement class and will soon be the instructor of our Threshold ballet class.  When asked to join the cast of The Snow Maiden, she felt these roles right up her alleyway of life -- Ms. Nella is the mother of seven children, all of whom are half-Russian!  

And she's loving every minute of it:

"It is absolutely wonderful to work with the young dancers who are so professional and full of life. It is amazing to be part of creating a scene where everyone is contributing their own role.  

"All in all I have to say that my experience at the school has opened up many delightful experiences and new joy in my life. It is a real community, friendly and cooperative, seriously committed to bring the wonder of dance into people's lives."

We feel fortunate to have Ms. Nella as part of SCD family & staff, as well as part of The Snow Maiden cast, and we know she'll do an absolutely fabulous job in her roles as "Babushka" and "Mama Winter."

May her warm enthusiasm for dance and performance melt your hearts this winter as much as they have melted ours at SCD!

Mark your calendars now for The Snow Maiden -- Saturday, December 8, and Sunday, December 9; curtains open at 1:00 p.m. at the Sebastiani Theatre, 476 1st Street East, Sonoma.  Tickets go on sale October 1st, online at BrownPaperTickets.com.  Reserved seating only, $12 - 22.